Alien: Covenant 2: Part 13

************ The Eyes Say it All *************

His circuits were beginning to pulse, to warm up to temp. His fluids were beginning to flow again (life seemingly being restored, after a lengthy sleep).

David 8 could feel his body becoming reanimated. He was regaining consciousness. The thing of it was, he could still remember everything. He could remember the time that was spent on Prometheus. He could recall the journey from the world of LV-223 to the alien world (a world which he had claimed as his own and destroyed upon arrival). Then too, he could remember his acquisition of the Covenant...and then his loss of the ship to Meredith Vickers.

"Curious, wasn't I supposed to have been cleansed of those memories? Vickers had told me that my data banks would be wiped, and that my physical capabilities would be altered? Evidently that process hasn't proceeded forward at this time."

He tested his restraints. They were still there; he was still bound as tightly as ever.

The android sensed a presents, a warmth radiating next to him. He opened his eyes. There was someone standing above him. He looked up into the most innocent face he had ever seen.

"Daniels...Danny?"

The woman stood there...looking down upon him. Evidentially Vickers or her father had decided to awaken at least one of the remaining members of Covenant's human crew.

Anyway, looking up into Daniels' eyes he could see coldness there, a coldness he had not witnessed before.

She leaned over closer to him.

"Give me one good reason for not punching you in the face right now?"

Even though androids were not supposed to be startled, David was taken a little aback by her response. It was understandable but still surprising.

"I can give you several," he answered. "However, foremost may be that it's possible that you'd hurt your hand more that you'd hurt me."

His words were emotionless and cold, like there were no feelings pulsing through his system. It sent chills up the frail woman's spine. She wasn't used to hearing androids speak this way.

(Back on earth she'd grown used to hearing synthetics converse. Although direct, they usually spoke with intelligence, intellect and comprehension, mixed in with a little empathy. Artificial units were created to be obedient, compliant, subservient and trusting. Their full existence was to assist humans, or the ones who'd created them. That was their purpose)

David looked frigidly into the eyes of the woman who stood hovering over him. Her eyes did not blink; they did not glass over or even show a drop of compassion.

"It may be worth it," he heard her say.

*********** Droid or Human *************

"Good morning..."

The mood was broken by another voice entering the chamber. It was a voice that David recognized well, and could claim to be as cold and as his own, maybe even colder. Meredith Vickers.

"...So there's no need for an introduction. You two obviously know each other and I sensing no huggy-wuggy warm feelings. No family reunion." She giggled at her jest.

"In fact, I'm sensing that Mrs. Daniels here wouldn't mind putting you into a solo-pod and shooting you out into the next star we come across. Am I wrong brother?" She spoke with much callous.

Meredith always was sharp with her words, to the point of being nauseous sometimes.

"Well, depending on how much you are human yourself sister..." David replied, "She may like to rocket both of us into a blue star."

It was a good comeback for someone bound to a tech-table. Someone unable to defend themselves. Lucky for him Meredith was not in her physically abusive mood this morning. Still, the secured android had nonetheless cast some suspicion on whether his sister was really human, or was she synthetic too? Daniels cast a sideways glance in her direction.

The Covenant had left Earth with 2000 colonists, 1,140 second-generation embryos, and 15 crew. Wasn't it possible that more than one android had been placed aboard the ship?

(Anroids were beneficial, but they were not infallible. They were expected to do much of the heavy lifting and the dangerous or impossibly taxing duties that humans could not. Peter Weyland could have clandestinely, placed other synthetics into the mix...Integrated them in with the colonists in case of some dramatic catastrophe.

Actually androids were the better choice for space travel, they were better suited. They didn't need to eat, so there was no need for food storage. They didn't breathe air, so there was no need for oxygen tanks, and they didn't sleep. Still, taking the "human element" completely out of the equation had never been seen as a serious consideration.)

David 8 smiled. He may be wiped soon, deleted of all of his memory. However, he still had a few tricks up his sleeve.

"I'd like to have a conference with you and your father," Daniels spoke to Meredith.

"After we put your brother back under," she concluded.

End Part 13